Foodie Site, Magazine Target Men

One doesn’t have to be a die-hard fan of Iron Chef to know that men have their own way of cooking and that it often involves meat, tongs and a grill.

This demo has been largely underserved by traditional media, but now, two publishers are firing up products aimed squarely at the male chef. Deen Bros Good Cooking is a new quarterly SIP (special-interest publication) featuring Food Network’s Jamie and Bobby Dean, the sons of the popular, Southern-fried celebrity chef Paula Deen.

Deen Bros comes from Hoffman Media, which publishes the popular Cooking with Paula Deen. Hoffman president, CEO Phyllis Hoffman said while the Deen Bros offshoot is aimed at a dual audience, she expected its light, easy recipes to have strong appeal with men. She hopes to take it to six times in 2011. “They have a tremendous following,” she said of the brothers. “People just love the boys.”

Taking another tack, Reader’s Digest Association is launching a user-generated site called Mantestedrecipes.com. Suzanne Grimes, president, U.S. Affinities, RDA, said research found almost all men like to cook but that 70 percent preferred a male-tailored site when it came to food. “They approach cooking differently from the way women do,” she said. “It suggested we should build something just for them.”

RDA has seeded the site with more than 2,500 recipes from male visitors to RDA’s Allrecipes.com and RDA’s male employees, whose predilection for beer, bacon and beef quickly comes through on the site. No 12-step recipes here; a recent search for “easy” turned up 872 results.

Both products plan to seek ad support once consumer interest builds. Grimes said she’d aim at packaged food and beverages and other male-targeted categories, with sales expected to pick up in spring: “There are a decent number of advertisers who target men during the grilling season.”